Racetech Jetski 3 Series Challenge
- Thread starter Fishton
- Start date
The forecast was a bit dodgy for the event, a fresh Northerly becoming a light NE with a moderate sea. As I had never launched or even seen the launch at Blythedale, it was a bit daunting. But the RaceTech Yamaha 3 Series was a first of its kind in South Africa and I wanted to be a part of it.
Unfortunately I was not able to make the skippers meeting the night before, but apparently the guys gave it horns and had quite a bash, so maybe it’s a good thing that I couldn’t make it. On my way to the event I spotted a fellow jetskier stuck on the side of the road, luckily he was only out of fuel and I had a spare 25L in my car. Arriving at Blythedale I saw there was a very good turnout and the road leading to the beach was buzzing. We all formed a queue, well some of us did while others adopted the ‘new South Africa system’, and awaited our turn to be towed to the beach by Jake in a big Ford F250, and his other helpers.
As I got on the beach I saw there was a nasty shore break, and two guys had already got a bit of sand in their hair, if you know what I mean. I’m not going to say too much because I nearly got a ‘klap’ myself. As I got out I decided to run south, someone told me to try the river near Tinley Manor 15km south of Blythedale. I trolled all the way down there but never got a touch, I wish I had just gone straight there as fast as possible. As I got there, I bumped into a friendly paddler that said there are a lot of snoek around, but reluctant to commit to a bite. So I tied on my trusty baby spoon with a red head and trolled fast along the backline. I never got a hit until I got to the river mouth, but it wasn’t snoek, it was wolf herring, by the hundreds. After getting about 15 right to the boat and losing them due to their soft mouths, I gave up. Then I removed the trace and tied a 30lb fluoro leader to the tiny spoon and went through the surf. On my first pass I got hit by a snoek, which I landed. I got another 2, but they were even smaller than the first, so it was going to be a bit of a stretch to make the 2kg mark.
It was time to head back and the wind was really picking up and becoming unpleasant. As I was leaving Tinley I picked up a really nice fat little Sada Sada, and just pinned him to a Wahoo feather. After only about five minutes of trolling out to sea, I saw the rod tip shaking like mad, so I knew something was after my live bait. As I got the rod in my hands and turned round I saw my bait on the surface making a dash for it as a massive big silver flash grabbed the bait. Unfortunately I did not give enough slack for long enough and I missed the hook set. It certainly got the hands shaking with excitement though.
I punched my way back to the launch and am very impressed with my SeaDoo Gti’s performance in these conditions. Beaching was easy enough with Mike Moffet directing us in one by one with a flag, and hats off to the guys who helped get the skis off the beach.
Walking to the weigh in with my ‘biggest’ snoek was a bit blind as it was so small I didn’t know whether to carry it or put it in my pocket. I only just missed the minimum weight of 2kg’s by a few grams, so it wasn’t too bad. I saw the father son team from Port Elizabeth with a nice pair fat big Bonnies, as well as Lance with a good snoek and a bonnie. Those of us who waited for prize giving saw the father-son team from PE take the first and second place, well done guys!!! And one of the chaps helping with the carting of skis up and down the beach (Neil I think it was), won the lucky draw prize of an awesome Garmin FishFinder.
Thank you to Patrick, Jake, Mike, Neil, and all the other chaps that made this a memorable day/event. I look forward to seeing all you guys at the next one in November at Mtwalume on the South Coast.
Unfortunately I was not able to make the skippers meeting the night before, but apparently the guys gave it horns and had quite a bash, so maybe it’s a good thing that I couldn’t make it. On my way to the event I spotted a fellow jetskier stuck on the side of the road, luckily he was only out of fuel and I had a spare 25L in my car. Arriving at Blythedale I saw there was a very good turnout and the road leading to the beach was buzzing. We all formed a queue, well some of us did while others adopted the ‘new South Africa system’, and awaited our turn to be towed to the beach by Jake in a big Ford F250, and his other helpers.
As I got on the beach I saw there was a nasty shore break, and two guys had already got a bit of sand in their hair, if you know what I mean. I’m not going to say too much because I nearly got a ‘klap’ myself. As I got out I decided to run south, someone told me to try the river near Tinley Manor 15km south of Blythedale. I trolled all the way down there but never got a touch, I wish I had just gone straight there as fast as possible. As I got there, I bumped into a friendly paddler that said there are a lot of snoek around, but reluctant to commit to a bite. So I tied on my trusty baby spoon with a red head and trolled fast along the backline. I never got a hit until I got to the river mouth, but it wasn’t snoek, it was wolf herring, by the hundreds. After getting about 15 right to the boat and losing them due to their soft mouths, I gave up. Then I removed the trace and tied a 30lb fluoro leader to the tiny spoon and went through the surf. On my first pass I got hit by a snoek, which I landed. I got another 2, but they were even smaller than the first, so it was going to be a bit of a stretch to make the 2kg mark.
It was time to head back and the wind was really picking up and becoming unpleasant. As I was leaving Tinley I picked up a really nice fat little Sada Sada, and just pinned him to a Wahoo feather. After only about five minutes of trolling out to sea, I saw the rod tip shaking like mad, so I knew something was after my live bait. As I got the rod in my hands and turned round I saw my bait on the surface making a dash for it as a massive big silver flash grabbed the bait. Unfortunately I did not give enough slack for long enough and I missed the hook set. It certainly got the hands shaking with excitement though.
I punched my way back to the launch and am very impressed with my SeaDoo Gti’s performance in these conditions. Beaching was easy enough with Mike Moffet directing us in one by one with a flag, and hats off to the guys who helped get the skis off the beach.
Walking to the weigh in with my ‘biggest’ snoek was a bit blind as it was so small I didn’t know whether to carry it or put it in my pocket. I only just missed the minimum weight of 2kg’s by a few grams, so it wasn’t too bad. I saw the father son team from Port Elizabeth with a nice pair fat big Bonnies, as well as Lance with a good snoek and a bonnie. Those of us who waited for prize giving saw the father-son team from PE take the first and second place, well done guys!!! And one of the chaps helping with the carting of skis up and down the beach (Neil I think it was), won the lucky draw prize of an awesome Garmin FishFinder.
Thank you to Patrick, Jake, Mike, Neil, and all the other chaps that made this a memorable day/event. I look forward to seeing all you guys at the next one in November at Mtwalume on the South Coast.
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[color="#006600"]Mou[/color] wrote:
You can download the entry & rules off Jake's site - http://jetskifishing.co.za/index.php
It is R300 if you sign up in advance, and R350 if you register on the day.
As for what's biting at the moment, just keep an eye out here at Sealine for reports.
Regards
John
Hi Mou
You can download the entry & rules off Jake's site - http://jetskifishing.co.za/index.php
It is R300 if you sign up in advance, and R350 if you register on the day.
As for what's biting at the moment, just keep an eye out here at Sealine for reports.
Regards
John
